September 04, 2012

Estonian doctors plan to strike in October to help stem outflow

The main goal of the work stoppage is to prevent doctors and nurses from emigrating, the doctors’ union said in an e- mailed statement today. The duration of the strike hasn’t been decided.

About a quarter of Estonia’s 4,000 specialized doctors are above pension age, and more than a third of all physicians are considering working abroad, the union said in June.

Doctors in the North Estonia Medical Center, the country’s biggest hospital, earn an average monthly wage of 2,296 euros ($2,893), compared with the national average of 900 euros, while they exceed nominal workloads by 43 percent on average, the hospital said.